The original Video for the OwlCity 10 Million Fireflies Song is here. Kind of hard to find on Youtube with so many people doing covers of this song. Really a beautiful song and according to the author’s Tweets, he is now #1 in 18 countries. Not bad for a solo act!
And this guy does a great acapella version of the same song
Tune in to these tunes!
Popularity: 10%
Inspired to great things, You make me wanna be next to you. I hate this, i want it, I can’t. I have to. Break it. Don’t wanna. Get me out.
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is close to the edge and he loves it out here! Danger Will Robinson, Danger!
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Chilly D.C. with snow everywhere! But its’ melting fast! And Shaun sweeps the Snowboard Gold on his Snowboard!
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Chillin’ in LA. Photo with Mickey M, Wax Version of Laurence Fishburne, and MJ’s star in front of Sid’s Chinese Theater…..
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I’ve always enjoyed art. Art of all kinds. I am drawn to artists (unintended, but well placed pun!) and truly enjoy their work. My favorites would be Dali, Gaudi, Albert Daniel, Joe Dowson, and Escher. While in the Hague, I took a stroll through the Escher museum. Interesting journey through the mind of a graphic artist.
I also must make mention of the young artists. Deviant Art is a great place to view good, modern art. 
Leah’s art and photography caught my eye. She just left Tokyo but as you can tell, she wishes she was back in the vibrant city that never sleeps.
Joe Dowson is one of my favorite native Hawaiian artists.
And so many more. Who is your favorite artist?
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Someday, someone is going to figure out that I don’t like iPods. Don’t get me wrong, I’m a fan of the convenience of digital music. I like what the iPod has done to music. And I think the design is a cool and refreshing device whose time has come. But it is not perfect. And I am looking for something a little cooler, a little more in tune with the way I listen to music.
And one of my major complaints about the iPod is the way I get the music into the little box. In order to play CDs that I own, I must sync my iPod to a single computer, and spend hours ripping the hundreds of CDs into that machine. Further, if the album is duplicated in the CD database, or if it is stored in a manner that is not to my liking, I have to spend some time editing the entry, genre, album name etc. I just don’t have the desire to spend this kind of time. I wish someone could just take all of my CDs, put them into a memory storage device, with the album covers, and then send me the whole device. Ultimately, this device would be portable and plugable. I should be able to copy these tunes to my car, my home stereo, my office desk, and anywhere else I might want to listen to music. I don’t want to be tied to an iPod. I don’t want to carry my iPod. I don’t even want an iPhone. I want to go as simple as possible…
And while walking around one of the shopping centers in Den Haag, I found a Bang & Olfsen store. For those of you not familiar with this high-end brand of audio equipment, don’t bother price shopping. This brand comes up with some of the best fidelity, and truly unique style of music machines. I loved their vertical CD player.
I walked into the store and told the salesman what I was looking for. He walked me right over to the $8,000 digital music system. I fell in love the instant I heard the concept. They take my CDs, covert them to a lossless format, upload them to a box, and then give me a stereo system that would meet most of my needs. Most, but not all.
I found the organization system great. The concept of matching songs was neat–you pick the first song, the machine picks all other songs that match the beat and style and unending music begins to play in a way you’ve never heard before.
I like this system! But I want an iPod price…
D
http://www.bang-olufsen.com/beosound5
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Lucy 222
While I’ve been away from my blog (last post was three months ago!) I discovered that exactly 222 Casinos sent me comments. I beleive this is a lucky omen, although I probably should have waited until that number was 777 before I deleted their comments…..But I digress,
The number 2 is pronunced futatsu when counting things in Japanese. It is often abbreviated as “fu” when used as a compound or when reading specialized license plates in Japan. So 222 = “Fu Fu Fu”…which is the Japanese way of making a snide laugh. Kind of like “Ha Ha Ha” in English. So the joke is on the Casinos? I don’t think so. Someone is paying for all that oppulence….I don’t think it comes from the kindness of their hearts. So why then, do tell me why, we continue to try to beat the odds and play games of chance that are rigged against us. Do we somehow hope beyond hope that we will be the one lucky winner? That somehow we will emerge on top?
Well, it turns out that if you are addicted to gambling and games of chance, chances are you will NEVER be cured. It is hard-wired into your system. And it turns out that it is males ages 16-24 that are most easily hooked. And once hooked, 4% remain hooked for life. So if you are one of those who is “hooked” can you ever go “straight” again?
Well that depends. If you really, really want to quit, then there is only one way. You MUST quit cold turkey. You can never gamble EVER again. Once you take a sip from the well, it tastes so good you have to go back for more. Don’t tempt fate. If you really want to quit, you must find the reasons within you. You must understand that you are hard-wired for this weakness. If you really don’t want to lose your family, your job, your real friends (not your compulsive gambler friends) you have to quit cold turkey. NO ifs ands or buts….
Go search the web for what ails you….but just don’t touch the stuff. It will draw you back into its fold and you will never be released. I hope that you can recover.
D
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Former Prime Minister Aso and the New Prime Minister Hatoyama
Big news. In charge of politics since 1955, the LDP lost its strangle hold on the Government of Japan in the August 30, 2009 elections after running the government into the ground. The opposition party, the DPJ, won a landslide victory and catapulted themselves to the role of leaders of the government.
Why did this happen and what does it mean?
It became increasingly clear that the LDP operated with little reflection on the changing needs and desires of their supporters. Despite the failings of the LDP, the DPJ did not attempt to provide leadership for this vacuum, but instead, under the leadership of Mr. Ozawa, consolidated their power and fought anything that the LDP proposed. It was chaos in government. At the political level, Japan failed to move forward smartly on anything. Prime Minister Aso could not extract himself from this quagmire.
The beginning of the end was likely the 50 million pension records that were “lost” in 2007. When the scandal broke, the Prime Minister appeared on TV and failed to recognize the magnitude of the situation nor the perspective of the aging population that depend heavily on these pensions. Rather than take charge and reassure the public that everything was being done to help….the prime minister crushed his supporters when he said the equivalent of “I hope you kept your receipts…”
It became clear the LDP lost touch with the population they claimed to support. And that was the beginning of the slide. PM Fukuda resigned to take responsibility for this fiasco and he was followed by Prime Minister Aso, another long-time LDP face who was known for his gaffes and inability to relate to the average person.
And from this point forward, the DPJ seized on this opportunity and began to oppose anything that could be opposed. The DPJ opposed refueling operatons in the Indian ocean, prevented the renewal of the gas tax, and host of other issues.
A somewhat related event was the economic crisis of 2008-2009. The livlihood of the average Japanese was at stake as companies began hiring more temps, and fewer full time employees. And then when the economic crisis hit, the temps were let go. This en masse firing of employees added momentum to the snowball. Then Obama’s election platform of change resonated with young and old throughout Japan. The voter turnout was a record 69% of registered voters turning out on Sunday and 13% of registered voters casting advance ballots. The pressure is certainly on for the government to do something different. But what?
So what now?
It is unclear what Prime Minister Hatoyama of the DPJ will do in order to lead the government and implement the spirit of change. The LDP is wounded but by no means are they out of the picture. The elected officials are younger and the LDP is looking to regenerate their image. This fight is not over. But perhaps, this is the beginning of a balanced 2-party system in Japan. And that is a good thing.
Although the bureaucracy that lies beneath the rough seas of politics in Japan is largely unaffected by election results–the real work done in the powerful Ministries (Finance, MLIT, etc.) retain the same structure, same rules, and same direction. These behemoths are not easily turned. Despite changes in Ministers, these behemoths are rarely swayed by the rhetoric that frequently buffets the news reports on TV in Japan.
But then again, the mandate for change is resounding. Leaders in both parties recognize that the same old backroom politics are no longer sufficient to keep the masses satisfied. The people have spoken, and they want leaders who are responsive. This could truly herald a new dawn in politics in Japan. It will be business as usual until the next round of decision making generates support or derision from the population at large. It is an exciting time to be following Japanese politics…at the same time, it is a glacial process. I doubt we will see anything like the Meiji Restoration this time around.
Dylan
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Kite surfers catch the last of the daylight at the end of another beautiful day in the Netherlands.
And with that in mind….why am I still sitting here writing this blog? Time to go work on another project. Signing off for now. Peace to you and may you enjoy life.
:>D
ylan
Popularity: 25%